Importance of Hse Trainings during Covid-19 Pandemic - a Case Study

To understand if international recognized HSE trainings, as NEBOSH, are supporting HSE professionals to harness companies as High Reliability Organizations (HRO) and being resilient towards COVID-19 impacts. The article "Assimilation of HSE standards from different countries - case study" was the previous one published and from which we expect to evolve and understand what can be improved. A survey to HSE professionals such as Health and Safety Managers, Directors and Environmental Managers. On NEBOSH trainings, 65,1% (n=28) professionals answered they feel more prepared to emergent risks (e.g., COVID-19) with this training, 53,5% (n=23) of HSE professionals felt that COVID-19 Pandemic affected their mental health during COVID-19 pandemic, 11,6% (n=5) of professionals resorted to therapy to take care of their mental. Performing Fisher's Exact Test, it was possible to see a significant relationships between Training in Health and Safety Vs Level of improvement of the organization for instance. HSE professionals due to COVID-19 Pandemic felt an impact in their mental health, and some of them had to resort to therapy. This fact makes the situation of mental health more tangible, this because in Portugal for instance, mental health was not very spoken about nor valued.

Lean and Green Modelling in Healthcare Supply Chains: The Case of Massive COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution

In more than 100 years, the first global pandemic COVID-19 has proliferated all over the world at an unprecedented speed. The biopharmaceutical industry is moving fast to discovering a vaccine while governments scaling up to overcome the complex task of a global vaccination program. Now the race is on to organize supply chains to distribute billions of vaccines around the world. The logistic of the distribution vaccine requires a huge amount of people, transportation equipment, and storage equipment for low temperatures to handle the highly perishable vaccine. The process requires a just-in-time environment to get the population as fast as possible, in the right conditions for each one of the individuals that need to take the vaccine. This is huge shipping, transportation, and distribution challenge. It inspired us to reflect on the requirements of a massive COVID-19 vaccine distribution;and to contribute to the process improvement, adapting previous research work on lean and green supply chain modelling. Considering the high number of challenges, this work intends to develop a lean and green model for the healthcare supply chain. An overview of developing the coronavirus vaccine supply chain, identifying and systematizing recent trends, and the impact of COVID-19 on global supply chain management is considered. How lean and green supply chain practices can help in the vaccine supply chain. © IEOM Society International.

How controlled were dyslipidemias in a year of pandemic?

Background and Aims: To describe and compare characteristics and metabolic control of a population with dyslipidemia prior to and during the COVID19 pandemic. Methods: We included all the patients with dyslipidemia followed at an Endocrinology Department. We analysed age, gender, number of appointments, lipid profile (triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and non-HDL cholesterol), fasting blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and uric acid. We compared the results between the years 2019 and 2020 in the period of March to December. Data were obtained from clinical records. Descriptive statistics were applied and the results are presented by the mean and standard deviation. Statistical significance was accepted for p <0.05. Results: We included 755 patients, 446 (59,1%) were male, age at diagnosis was 63.1±13.1 years and follow up time was 12.3±7.8 years. Five-hundred thirty two patients (70.5%) had type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. Coronary artery disease was found in 11.1% of the patients, peripheral arterial disease in 8.9% and cerebrovascular disease in 7.9%. In 2020 patients had less appointments (2.1 vs 3.4;p<0.001). The mean TC was lower in 2020 (175.3±42.4 vs 179.8±44.9mg/dL;p<0.01) as well as LDL cholesterol (93.8±35.9 vs 98.3±30.2mg/dL;p<0.01), non-HDL cholesterol (122.2±41.5 vs 128.7±43.7mg/dL;p<0.01), HbA1c (7.4±1.2 vs 7.6±1.3%;p<0.01) and fasting blood glucose (140.46±49.2 vs 145.3±57.7mg/dL;p=0.026). The mean HDL cholesterol, TG and acid uric were similar between both years. Conclusions: In our sample, we found that despite a lower number of consultations during the pandemic we obtained lower values of TC, LDL cholesterol, non–HDL cholesterol, HbA1c and fasting blood glucose.

Student support strategy in pandemic times

As a result of the main reflections and analyses on the experience that has been carried out after the declaration of the health emergency due to the presence of the coronavirus in Uruguay, this article aims to present the student support strategy designed and promoted in this context by the Learning Support Program of the University of the Republic. A brief introduction is made to the institutional and health context in which this strategy is situated, and some preliminary results arising from the evaluation of its impact are presented, in the first semester of implementation. This strategy is framed in the largest public university in Uruguay, which has undergone a series of transformations during the last decades, involving a growing expansion and diversification of its student enrollment and academic offer, which translates every year into more students coming from the most diverse socioeconomic and cultural contexts.The strategy involves redirecting all its proposals for student support and orientation to a virtual modality, while promoting two new lines: distance entrance support tutorials, and a space for virtual psychological support and containment. It is based on the concept of institutional responsibility supported by the Program, which considers that it is the institution that is responsible for generating the guarantees so that everyone who is in condition and wishes to do so can develop their complete educational career.

Tracking the international spread of SARS-CoV-2 lineages B.1.1.7 and B.1.351/501Y-V2

Late in 2020, two genetically-distinct clusters of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) with mutations of biological concern were reported, one in the United Kingdom and one in South Africa. Using a combination of data from routine surveillance, genomic sequencing and international travel we track the international dispersal of lineages B.1.1.7 and B.1.351 (variant 501Y-V2). We account for potential biases in genomic surveillance efforts by including passenger volumes from location of where the lineage was first reported, London and South Africa respectively. Using the software tool grinch (global report investigating novel coronavirus haplotypes), we track the international spread of lineages of concern with automated daily reports, Further, we have built a custom tracking website (cov-lineages.org/global_report.html) which hosts this daily report and will continue to include novel SARS-CoV-2 lineages of concern as they are detected.

Contracts for the provision of state in relation to COVID-19 in Colombia

Profession service provision contracts are a form of direct public procurement that can only be suspended by force majeure, fortuitous event or public interest. In this sense, being the COVID- 19 a pandemic that has the qualities to be considered an event of force majeure, the content of Legislative Decree No. 491 of 2020 was interpreted, through which it was decided on the suspension of the contracts for the provision of state services, finding that it complies with article 95 contained in the Political Charter of 1991, which refers to the principle of solidarity, which merits its application to ward off the public health crisis due to the Coronavirus in light of fundamental, economic and social rights, such as life, human dignity, the vital minimum, health and work.

Level of satisfaction of online classes by students of Physical Education of Chile in times of pandemic

Introduction: In Chile the first case of COVID-19 was diagnosed on March 3, 2020 and on the eighteenth of the same month the president decreed state of catastrophe, so that classes at school and university level went from the presence to the virtuality.The present study aims to know the level of satisfaction of the virtual classes of the students of Physical Education. Methodology: Quantitative, non experimental, transversal.The sample consisted of 542 students of Physical Education from different study houses in Chile.The Satisfaction scale online classes was adapted and validated. Results: there are significant differences comparing theoretical and practical subjects, with theoretical chairs being better valued. Differences were also found by sex, where males have a more negative perception about virtual classes and when comparing by course, freshmen have a more positive perception about virtual classes in relation to higher courses. Conclusions: there is a resistance on the part of students to virtual classes in Physical Education, because, although significant differences were found between the theoretical and practical subjects, values were always around 3 on a scale of 1 to 5. Future research with other variables such as physical activity, stress levels and strategies for the teaching of Virtual Physical Education are necessary. © Copyright: Federación Española deAsociaciones de Docentes de Educación Física (FEADEF)

Outcomes of the reorganisation of a medical oncology department during the COVID-19 pandemic: Real-word experience

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has transformed health care delivery in the world, forcing clinicians to make challenging triage decisions. COVID-19 represents a significant harm for cancer patients, who are at high risk of infections due to their immunosuppressed status and serious COVID-19-related events. Portuguese oncologists joined forces to ensure safety of clinical practice without compromising cancer patients care, as the benefit of ensuring an anti-cancer treatment outweighs the risks of COVID-19. Methods: Description and outcomes analysis of structural organization measures adopted by a Portuguese Medical Oncology Department during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: A proactive approach to the actual emergency panorama was promptly implemented: use of individual protection equipment, triage of patients accessing the hospital, use of telemedicine in selected patients with no need for on-site assessment, customising treatment delivery, regularly test patients under immunosuppressive treatments, test all patients prior to admission in oncology wards, limited access for visitors and caregivers, health professionals worked in “mirror teams” and most multidisciplinary boards have been converted in telematic meetings. Despite all the constraints in the activity, the number of consultations (including tele-consultations) increased compared to the same period of the previous year (3245 consultations from 1/03 to 15/05/2020 versus 3305 in the same period of 2019), the number of first consultations remained similar comparatively (15%) and were carried out in a timely manner, indicative that the cancer patient circuit was not compromised. 368 fewer treatments were performed in the same period, compared to 2019. Until May 15th, 288 tests have been carried out. Four patients were positive for COVID-19 without severity criteria, two of them with a diagnosis of cure, currently being under antineoplastic treatment without related complications. Conclusions: Practice recommendations from European and national oncology societies were applied, which translated into a safe continuum of cancer care delivery. In the middle-term, will be a priority to assess the real impact on cancer mortality. Legal entity responsible for the study: The authors. Funding: Has not received any funding. Disclosure: All authors have declared no conflicts of interest.